Standing at the Edge of the Earth
by Sheblet
Summary: SET IN THE SCHOOL, BEFORE JEB OR THE E SHAPED HOUSE AND ALL THAT. Max is taken away; Fang waits for her to return. Songfic to Blessed Union of Soul's Standing at the Edge of the Earth. FAXXY FAX.


**A/N: Yea, this is a faxxy lil oneshot songfic thingy that takes place a looong time ago, before Iggy even went blind. And..yea. I know there are quite a few mistakes, but....Enjoy :)**

_I__ knew that this moment would come in time,_

_That I'd have to let go and watch you fly_

_I know you're coming back so why am I_

_Dying inside?_

Fang watched sullenly as a white coat grabbed Max roughly from her cage and dragged her out of the room, Max spitting random insults the whole way. He shivered as he thought about what they were going to do this time. He felt like ripping someone apart. He hated it when they took her away from him. Because then he didn't know what would happen to her. And she would come back, he told himself. She always did.

_Are you searching for words that you can't find?_

_Trying to hide your emotions, but eyes don't lie_

Max was in relatively one piece when she got back, though her nose was bleeding profusely. She flashed Fang a brief grin after the white coat had left. "What did they want?" he asked softly.

"Just to talk."

"Well then what's up with the...?" He gestured to his own nose. Max blinked and quickly swiped at her nose. "Oh, um. That. Yea, I kind of attacked a white coat." Fang smirked slightly. That was Max, always fighting. But something wasn't right. There was something she wasn't telling him.

"What did you talk about?"

She flinched, then looked as if she was struggling for words. "Well, um. They said they're moving me to a different building. They want to do some...new experiments, and they can only do them there." Fang suddenly gripped the sides of his cage. _"What_?" he seethed. "They can't do that!"

She grinned again, and Fang's anger melted. "I know," she said reassuringly. "That's why we won't let them."

Fang nodded. They wouldn't let them.

_Guess there's no easy way to say goodbye_

_I'll be standing at the edge of the Earth,_

_Hoping that someday you'll come back again_

_I'll be standing at the edge of the Earth_

_Hoping that someday...._

_Someday_

Fang took a deep breath, then plucked one of his primary feathers. He didn't even twitch. Then, he tied it to a piece of black yarn he'd managed to find. He wordlessly turned and transferred the homemade necklace from his cage to hers.

"What's this?" Max fingered the necklace, admiring the way the black feather was tinted with purple in the right light. "It's a promise," Fang responded, and if he was able to show his emotions, he would be blushing. "A promise that, if they do take you away, I'll be waiting for you to come back. And if you don't, I'll find you."

_Don't misunderstand what I'm trying to say_

_I don't want to let you leave this way_

_I want you to know that I'll be_

_Right by your side_

"What are you trying to say? That you're just going to give up and let them take me?!" Max face was angry. Fang panicked, his eyes wide. "No, no! That's not what I'm saying. I just...will you wear it?" Max sighed, then tied the necklace behind her head. Fang sighed with relief.

"Are you mad? I don't want you to be mad. If they take you, I don't want them to take you if you're mad at me. That wouldn't be good. I mean, I wouldn't be able to stand not being able to make you...not mad at me." This was the most Fang had spoken in his entire life. Max was surprised.

"No, Fang. I'm not mad. You're my best friend, remember?"

"I know. But listen, I'm here for you, okay? I'm not going to let them take you, and I'll be right here, next to you." Gosh, he was talking a lot lately. A few moments later, something fell onto his lap. A feather, white and speckled with brown.

"I don't have any yarn."

"That's okay," he said, "I have some left." Max waited for him to tie the string to the feather before murmuring, "That's my promise. I promise to come back."

_And I know this may be_

_The very last time that we see each other cry_

_And whatever happens know that I'll_

_I'll be standing at the edge of the Earth_

Tears leaked from Max's eyes, and Fang wished he could wipe them away. Today was the day they planned to take Max away. Fang smiled, a real, full smile, in order to try and reassure his friend. "Hey, don't cry," he begged. "You're not going anywhere."

And that's when they came, white coats and erasers. A couple of white coats were pushing a cart. Fang whispered in Max's ear, "Whatever happens, know that I'm here, and that if you don't come back, I'll find you." Max nodded. An eraser leaned down and lifted Max's crate. She started yelling, moving violently around in her crate in an attempt to knock it out of the eraser's hands. Then, she bit his finger. He howled and dropped her crate. She landed upside down.

Fang struggled with his own crate, trying to bust it open by rocking back and forth, all the while screaming profanities at the vile creatures that were trying to take Max, _his _Max, away from him. He saw red.

"Fang!" sobbed Max, her fingers stretching through the holes in her crate. Fang knew very well this could be the last time he saw her crying, or even saw her at all.

"Max!" he called back. His own fingers mimicked hers, and if he pretended, they could have been touching. The eraser picked up Max's crate again, and strapped it to the cart so that, try as she might, she wouldn't be able to tip herself off.

Fang let out an angry roar and rammed into the side of his crate, which bounced off the wall. Miraculously, the door popped open. Fang was out before anyone could register what happened, punching and kicking blindly. Someone grabbed him from behind and began wrestling him back to his cage, pinning his arms to his sides.

"No!" he screamed, and he managed to get an arm free, reaching out for Max, but she was too far away.

And then they were gone. Fang, after being forced back in, huddled in the corner of his cage, feeling miserable. He felt an emptiness on his left side, where Max's crate had been. It felt like they'd cut of his left wing. He'd often had this feeling when they took her away for experimenting, but not like this. He'd always known that she'd come back.

This was so much _worse._

_Hoping that one day you'll come back again_

_I'll be standing at the edge of the Earth_

_Hoping that someday you'll come back to me_

_I'll be praying for whatever it's worth_

_Believing that one day you'll come back again_

_I'll be standing at the edge of the Earth_

_Hoping for someday_

Fang became hollow inside. He was cold and angry. He spit on every white coat and punched out every eraser in his way, though he never got far enough to get out. But he'd promised her he'd wait. She'd come back. She'd also made a promise, and Max was very good at keeping promises.

He waited and waited, long enough that the spot next to him became occupied by someone new; a blond haired, blue eyed boy who was around Fang's own age. It filled the space beside his crate, but it didn't fill the hole in his heart.

The blond boy ignored him, but not before telling him his name was Iggy. Fang introduced himself, and was about to introduce Max when he remember she wasn't there. A fresh wave of emptiness hit him, and he'd never felt so alone.

Fang fingered the feather at his throat and closed his eyes, deciding to try something new. He'd heard about it from certain white coats, and though he normally wouldn't stoop to that level, desperate times called for desperate measures.

And so he prayed.

_And I know_

_This may be the very last time that we see each other cry_

_And whatever happens know that I_

_I'll be standing at the edge of the Earth_

_Hoping that one day you'll come back again_

_I'll be standing at the edge of the Earth_

_Hoping that someday you'll come back to me_

_I'll be praying for whatever it's worth_

The image of Max's tear-streaked face as she was being taken away was forever burned in Fang's mind. He had nightmares recounting the event every night. He heard her calling out his name, felt himself whispering hers. Iggy often asked him what he was mumbling about. Fang told him nothing.

_Okay, Max. I'm waiting, right here, for you. You need to hurry. I feel alone, Max. I want you to come back. I need you. There, I said it._

That was how he prayed, because that's how he thought it worked. He hoped she could hear him.

Other kids were moved into his room as well. A little boy, whom Iggy affectionately called "The Gasman," due to his messed up digestive system; a young girl, who both Iggy and Fang dubbed "Nudge" because The Gasman, who shared a crate with her, was always having to nudge her to get her to be quiet.

And then there was the baby. A little girl, already with a full head of short hair. Her smile reminded him of Max, and he decided that she should be the one to name the baby. So he told them not to name her. They all followed his orders without question.

_Believing that one day you'll come back again_

_I'll be standing at the edge of the Earth_

_Hoping for someday_

_Waiting for someday_

_Believing in someday_

_Praying for someday_

Fang suddenly got to a point where he felt an emotional adrenalin rush. He would scream in his head, begging for Max to come back. Sometimes he noticed that the little baby would stir when he did this.

He fought against his crate. He knew it had been too long. Now Max was waiting for him. He'd promised to find her if she didn't come back. He excelled in his pain endurance experiments because he barely felt them; his mind was somewhere else, with Max.

He had a strong belief that she would come back, but an equally strong belief that he had to find her.

_I'll be longing for someday_

_Clinging for someday_

_Cherishing someday_

_I'll be thinking of someday_

_Dreaming of someday_

_Wishing for someday_

_I'll be living for someday_

He had a dream. It was a dream where Max came back and escaped together, along with the other kids in Fang's room. And they lived together in a strange, E-shaped house on a mountain side, where nobody could separate them.

Even though it was just a dream, Fang couldn't help but believe it was true. He clung to the dream, wished for it to come true. He _lived _for the possibility that he could live happily ever after with Max.

It wasn't long before the white coats discovered that the little baby girl could read minds. It was right after she started talking that they knew. She started repeating things she heard in their heads.

Sometimes she heard him think "Max". The others thought it was just baby-talk, but Fang obviously knew otherwise.

_Counting on someday_

_Knowing that one day_

One day Fang was watching the baby sleep when suddenly, she was startled awake. He watched her in concern. "Max!" she shouted. Fang frowned. Why did she have to do that? Didn't she know that hurt?

But the baby continued to chant, "Max! Max! Max!"

And then the door opened, and two figures stepped in, one carrying a crate and looking considerably taller than the other.

"Okay, who are all these new kids and why does that baby know my name?"

_I will see you_


End file.
